Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard

In the quiet of the Gould household, Charles Gould finds his wife sitting alone and troubled. Mrs. Gould fears for their position in Sulaco. Charles responds calmly and firmly, insisting that their course has long been fixed. He explains that there is no possibility of turning back or even pausing, and that he is prepared to go “any distance” (150) necessary to secure success. Mrs. Gould, though shaken, accepts his resolve outwardly and withdraws, leaving him to return to the mine at midnight to supervise the next silver shipment. 

As she walks through the dim corridor, Mrs. Gould encounters Martin Decoud, who reveals that he has returned because of troubling rumors that the Ribierist forces have suffered a major defeat. General Barrios is at sea with his troops and will learn the news only upon reaching Cayta. Mrs. Gould is horrified by the prospect of Montero’s victory, but Decoud quickly reframes the situation. He argues that even if the rumors are true, nothing is irretrievably lost. He proposes a new course of action centered on a revolution in Sulaco itself and the separation of the Occidental Province from the rest of Costaguana. Decoud admits openly that his motives are personal as well as political. His attachment to Antonia makes flight impossible, and his name will be excluded from any Monterist amnesty. Separation, he claims, is both a practical solution and the only way to protect Sulaco, the mine, and those dependent on it.

Decoud explains that his plan depends on holding Cayta, organizing resistance locally, and using Hernández and his band to defend the province. He urges Mrs. Gould to consider her moral responsibility toward the mine workers, hospital patients, and families settled at San Tomé. He also insists that the silver convoy must proceed to the harbor as scheduled so it can be shipped north to secure financial backing from Holroyd. He adds that Nostromo has promised to keep the cargadores loyal to the Europeans in the event of unrest. After hesitation, Mrs. Gould silently agrees to let the silver come down from the mine. As he departs, Mrs. Gould continues down the corridor, feeling that the mine has become “a monstrous and crushing weight” (160) bearing down upon her and her husband, separating them from their original humanitarian ideals.

Chapter 7 is framed as a long letter written by Martin Decoud to his sister in Paris, composed during the night in the Viola hotel. Decoud recounts the violent riot that has engulfed the town following the collapse of President Ribiera’s cause. 

In Decoud’s account, a mob attempts to seize the San Tomé silver in the Custom House, meeting resistance from European residents and railway engineers. Decoud himself takes part in the defense, firing from the windows of the club to keep open the Calle de la Constitución so that women and children can escape to ships in the harbor. 

During the riot, Ribiera unexpectedly arrives in Sulaco, having fled across the mountains with the muleteer (mule driver) Bonifacio. Nostromo spirits him aboard the steamer Minerva, saving him from the violence of the mob. The tide of violence then turns. The rioters are driven back into the poorer parts of the town. Two provincial deputies, Gamacho and Fuentes, eventually assume leadership of the mob under Monterist principles, organizing a rival committee and proposing a truce with the European-led Amarilla Club. Decoud dismisses these political maneuvers, asserting that real power in Sulaco lies only with the railway engineers and Nostromo.

As the night quiets, Decoud continues writing. He describes the silence of the town, the darkness of the gulf, and the passing of railway stock being withdrawn for safety. He has not eaten or slept for many hours and feels overwhelmed by fatigue and restlessness. He resumes writing instead of resting, explaining that he wants to leave a clear record of his thoughts in case he does not survive. Decoud recounts events at the Casa Gould following the riot. The patio has been turned into a hospital for the wounded, with Dr. Monygham treating injuries and Father Corbelán hearing confessions. Mrs. Gould moves tirelessly among the injured, assisting with supplies. Upstairs, a remnant of the Provincial Assembly debates surrender. Decoud delivers an impassioned speech urging resistance. Don José Avellanos supports him weakly, but the others hesitate. Don José collapses soon afterward, and Decoud believes the strain has effectively killed him.

Decoud then outlines the worsening strategic situation. News arrives by telegraph that Pedro Montero has pursued Ribiera through the mountains, killing Bonifacio, and has reached the railway construction camp. Montero demands trains and inquires aggressively about the San Tomé silver. Meanwhile, the garrison of Esmeralda has mutinied, seized a government steamer, and cut cable communications. These forces now threaten Sulaco from land and sea. Decoud explains that a plan has been formed to save the silver at all costs. Mrs. Gould supports removing it immediately from the country to preserve the mine’s future and maintain foreign backing. Nostromo is chosen to transport the treasure across the gulf in a company lighter (a small ship intended to land—“light”—in shallow waters) and Decoud decides to accompany him. He insists he is not fleeing but acting to preserve the silver, which has become the true target of the rebellion.

The narrative returns to the present as Nostromo arrives at the inn with Dr. Monygham. Giorgio Viola’s wife, Teresa, is dying, and Mrs. Gould prepares to take Decoud to the wharf. Nostromo goes upstairs to see Teresa, who reproaches him bitterly for valuing public praise over personal loyalty. Their confrontation reveals her long-standing disappointment in his ambition and reputation. After refusing her request to fetch a priest, Nostromo leaves, unsettled but resolute. At the wharf, Europeans and cargadores load the silver into the lighter. Charles Gould stands silently among them. As they sail across the dark harbor, Nostromo cannot be sure of his bearing. They aim to rendezvous with a steamer at sea to unload the silver, but they fear being intercepted by rebels. Nostromo cynically laments the mission as “the most famous and desperate affair” (191) of his life. He would rather the treasure sink, he says, than allow it to fall into the wrong hands. Without any wind, they are forced to row. Nostromo regrets that he did not “fetch a priest for a dying woman” (193) and fears that he will be cursed as a result. Amid the quiet, they hear a sound. There is “somebody weeping on this lighter” (194), they realize. On searching the boat, they find Señor Hirsch “in an absurd pretense of sleep, faintness, or death” (195).

On discovering Señor Hirsch hidden aboard, Decoud and Nostromo inspect his seemingly lifeless body. Terrified into near immobility, Hirsch rouses and recounts how he fled Sulaco barefoot during the riot, hid all day, and wandered through the outskirts of town in darkness, narrowly avoiding armed patrols, dogs, and hostile crowds. Driven purely by fear, he eventually crawled onto the OSN Company wharf and threw himself into the lighter, concealing himself under the half-deck. He explains that he understood the silver was being removed but dared not reveal himself, hoping only to “get away from this terrible Sulaco” (197).

Nostromo orders Hirsch forward, threatening to kill him if he moves or makes noise. Hirsch obeys, scrambling into the darkness at the bow and collapsing there. His presence unsettles both men, especially Nostromo, who regards fear itself as a form of treachery in such an enterprise. Though he argues that Hirsch should have been thrown overboard, Nostromo ultimately does nothing, recognizing that any attempt to silence him now would risk detection. Decoud resolves not to interfere with whatever decision Nostromo might make. Nostromo extinguishes the candle, plunging the lighter into complete darkness. Soon, a steamer approaches: the captured government transport from Esmeralda, commanded by Colonel Sotillo, carrying Monterist troops intent on seizing the silver. The steamer proceeds cautiously without lights, stopping and starting as its officers argue on the bridge. Nostromo lowers the sail completely. He and Decoud remain motionless as the steamer draws dangerously close through the “deathlike stillness” (202).

Nostromo explains bitterly that he never wanted Decoud with him, having foreseen the danger, but had been compelled by promises made at Casa Gould. He insists that the silver must be saved at all costs and repeats that he is prepared to destroy both lighter and treasure rather than surrender them. The tension culminates when the steamer strikes the lighter. The collision nearly swamps the smaller craft. Hirsch screams in panic and is flung toward the mast. As the steamer’s anchor hooks into the lighter’s rigging, Hirsch clings to it and is carried away aboard the transport, still shouting for help. The anchor cable parts, freeing the lighter. The steamer, believing it has sunk the lighter, resumes its course toward Sulaco. Hirsch is later beaten and imprisoned by Sotillo, but his story unsettles the officers.

The lighter is badly damaged and leaks heavily. Nostromo and Decoud work in silence, Decoud pumping continuously while Nostromo steers. They manage to run the lighter ashore in a hidden cove on Great Isabel island. Together, they unload the silver, carrying the treasure up a ravine. Once exhausted, they rest briefly while Nostromo explains that he knows the island well from earlier solitary explorations. Decoud elects to stay behind on the island with food, tools, and instructions to further conceal the hiding place. Nostromo departs alone, intending to return to Sulaco. Realizing that bringing back the lighter would expose him, he decides to scuttle it near the harbor entrance. He allows the boat to sink, then swims ashore under cover of dawn, erasing all evidence of the silver’s escape.